Cable connector



Aprl'14,l 1942A. y l I 'w1-Busse E TAL 2280,027

CABLE CONNECTOR Filed Aug. 30, 1940 na-m1111115: "if,

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Patented Apr. 14, 1942 William J. Busse, YFrank Wallace, and Albert W.

Lanham, Carriers Mills, 111.',Iassigno1s` of onefifth to Joseph A'. Bottomley, Harrisburg, and

. one-fifth to Alfred E. Pickard, Mount Vernon,

Ill.

Application August 30, 1940, Serial No. 354,850 Claims. (ci. zart-1126) I This invention relates to loable connectors or` portable plugs and sockets for rubber covered or other insulated cables adapted for use in connection with mine equipment or otherwise.

In mining, quarrying, construction, manufacturing and many other fields, the rubber covered Y power cable has made it possible to take the machine to the work, instead of bringing the work to the machine.

However, difliculties in handling the cables have occurred and particularly in connection with the connectors or plugs and sockets singly or plurally. It has been the practice to cut out portions or small sections of a tubular member comprising a socket and then to reinsert these sections andwire the same for the purpose of obtaining friction to grip the plug but they have been found unsatisfactory inasmuch as insuiclent friction is provided and the parts soon become loose and fail to hold together.

I It is, therefore, the object of the present invention to provide an improved connector or 'plug and'socket connection for single or plural cables which is constructed in a simple and novel manner to rmly grip the plug within the socket and maintain the electrical connection at all times under all conditions.

Further objects and advantages will appear 4 and be brought out more fully in the following specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a vside elevation of a connect-or in accordance with the invention;

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig.` 1 in a plane at right angles thereto;

Figs. 3 and 4 are longitudinal sections taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2, the plug being removed in Fight; and

Figs. 5 and 6 are transverse sections taken on the lines 5-5 and 6--6 of Fig. 3.

Referring to the drawing in detail, the connector or plug and socket connection is shown as comprising a plug I 0 usually made of brassor I bronze having a tapered end Il and having an enlarged terminal portion I2 forming a shoulder I3 therewith. The terminal portion is in the form of a sleeve having a bore I 4 with an end wall I5 producing a, socket in which a rubber covered or other insulated cable or conductor I6 is soldered,

, brazed or otherwise anchored.

The socket is designated at Il and has a par1 tition or end wall I8 with a bore I9 at one end forming a socket in which a cable or conductor 20 is fastened or anchored in the manner that the cable or conductor I6 is anchored in the socket Il by soldering, brazing, or the like. The socket or bore proper is designated at 2l, being in the form of` an elongated bore designed to frictionally receive the plug I0 with or without abuttingV the shoulder I3. In order to frictionally gripthe plug firmly and positively, the wall of `the socket Il is sawed or cut longitudinally from the`periphery as indicated at 22, the kerf eX- tending inwardly at a relatively sharp angle vand curved toward the longitudinal axis as indicated at 23and then .extended axially as indicated at 24 through opposed walls of the socket diametrically opposite each other and severed from the periphery of the tube forming the socket as indicated at 25. This produces an elongated tapered curved or arched tongue 26 at one side. In order to cause this tongue to tightly grip the plug which is inserted in the socket to effect an electrical connection between the two cables, a hole 21 is drilled radially through the wall of the socket diametrically opposite the tongue 26 and centrally between its sides adjacent the end of the cut 22 and the partition or end wall I8, anda point or tool set is passed through the hole to strike the inner face of the tongue a sharp blow producing an indentation 28. Whether or not an indentation is produced, the free end of the tongue is caused to move inwardly as the opposite portion is caused to move outwardly by the leverage produced by the blow, thus contracting `the tongue within the bore of the socket to firmly connection, especially since the plug will also close the hole 21, according to our method.

Thus, it will be seen that we have provided a cable connector or plug and socket connections which, while shown in connection with a single conductor, may be employed in connection with a plural connector of any desirable number of cables or conductors. It will also be seen that the parts may be suitably coated with rubber or I other insulation to better effect the provision of an insulated and waterproofed joint.

While We have illustrated and described'the preferred form of construction for carrying our invention into effect, this is capable of variation and modification without departing from the spirit of the invention. We, therefore, do not wish to be limited to the precise details of construction set forth, but desire to avail ourselves of such variations and modiiications as come within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A socket for cable connectors having a cable anchoring end and a tubular socket, the walls of said socket being cut from the periphery in an inwardly and longitudinally curved direction and then longitudinally to form a tapered tongue sprung in at its free end to constrict the.

bore of the socket for frictionally gripping the plug inserted therein.

2. A cable connector including 'af-plug having a cable anchoring end and asocketv adapted to receive the plug, said socket having a cable' anohoring end and a slit extending inwardly from its periphery and longitudinally t'o form attaipered spring tongue pressed inwardly at its free end to grip the plug when inserted in the socket; said slit being of U-form and continuously;

narrow.

3. A cable connector including; a plug; having. avcable anchored at one end and ai socket" also.

havinga cable anchored at' one end, the socket comprising an elongated tubular member having a slot cut directly from itsperiphery in anin- Wardly and longitudinally curved Ydirection from'y adjacent the free end to an axial point remote from said end, the tongue being sprung outwardly at its anchored end and inwardly at its free end against the portion from which it is slit. 4. A connector comprising a tubular member having means at one end to connect the cable, a slit cutdiagonally inwardly from adjacent the opposite end of said member and then longitudinally thereof to form a spring tongue with a tapered end, said tapered end normally resting againstthe wall portion of the tubular member thereby preventing the tongue end from presenting an obstruction to a plug entering the socket. 52 A! connector comprising a tubular member having meansat one end to connect the cable, a slit cut diagonally inwardly from adjacent the opposite end of said member and then longitudinally thereof to form a spring tongue with a tapered end, said tapered end normally resting against` the wall portion of the tubular member thereby,L preventing the tongue end from presenting an obstruction to a plug entering the socket, andan aperturein the tubular member approximatelyopposite the root end of the tongue.

WILLIAM J. BUSSE. FRANK WALLACE. ALBERT W. LANHAM. 

